No. 21 New Mexico avenged a black mark on last season, knocking off No. 10 Minnesota 62-44 in The Pit Wednesday night.
The Lobos were still smarting from last year's 75-35 loss to the Golden Gophers last year in Williams Arena on the Minnesota campus.
"We were all really upset by last year's loss and wanted to prove we could beat this team," said junior point guard Katie Montgomery, who led the Lobos with 16 points, four rebounds, four assists and one turnover in 40 minutes of play.
New Mexico relied on swarming defense to shut down the Golden Gophers, who shot 28.3 percent from the field and 20 percent from 3-point range.
"We played zone, man-to-man and used a couple of different press," New Mexico coach Don Flanagan said. "We threw everything we had at them."
Perhaps the biggest adjustment was double teams on the low post that came from varying directions, constantly frustrating the Gophers' post players.
Minnesota's top scorers, forwards Natasha Williams, Liz Podominick and Jamie Broback, combined for 12 points. They typically combine for an average 42.1 points per game.
"I think tonight was our best defensive game," said Lobos senior Jana Francis, who finished with 13 points and six rebounds.
The Lobos have two wins over ranked opponents this season, tying the school record for the wins over Top 25 teams in a season.
New Mexico also picked up its biggest win since knocking off No. 9 Utah 76-59 in The Pit on Jan. 29, 1998.

Posted by ilimon at 12:20 AM | Permalink